Opportunities

Throughout the year, there are always many opportunities available to undergraduates to enhance your knowledge and experience in the field of Economics.  Below are different types of opportunities currently available.

The Ec Department runs an Economics Research Assistant Program (RAP), which pairs students with faculty for semester-long RA positions. Please check out details on our website (and make sure you are signed up on our listserv to hear when RAP is accepting applications).

Types of Opportunities:

Jobs, Research Analysts or Assistantships, Internships  For Seniors  Funding Opportunities  Other Interesting Opportunities

Jobs, Research Analysts or Assistantships, Internships

• Research Assistant: Professors Emily Breza, Arun Chandrasekhar, and Dev Patel are seeking a motivated undergraduate research assistant to support data analysis for a research project on crop insurance in India. The position is ideal for a student interested in economics, environmental policy, development, public policy, or data science. Please send a resume, transcript, and a brief statement of interest describing your background and why you are interested in the project to devapatel3@gmail.com. Deadline: none given (posted 3/25/2026)
• Various Research Assistantships at the National Bureau of Economic Research
• Pathways to Research and Doctoral Careers (PREDOC): A one-stop place where undergraduate students from any backgrounds can find all the information they need, including available RA job positions around the country, educational material to prepare for e.g. data tests, guidance on courses to take, testimonials, and more.

For Seniors

• Economics Consulting Analyst/Associate: Charles River Associates seek Bachelor’s or Master’s degree candidates graduating December 2026/Summer 2027 with an academic focus on quantitative research for a variety of positions. Deadline: none given (posted 7/14/2026)
• Junior Data Scientist: Opportunity Insights is hiring a Data Scientist.  This work will support the development of new policies and financial models to invest in successful programs, potentially including Opportunity Capital, a new investment fund that deploys private capital to scale programs that increase economic mobility launched in 2026 by Harvard Professor Raj Chetty. Deadline: none given (posted 6/8/2026)
• Research Analyst Program (RAP): The International Monetary Fund (IMF) seeks students who have recently completed their undergraduate studies with a superior academic record and who would like to gain useful work experience before pursuing graduate studies. Deadline: none given (posted 10/6/2025)
• Compilation of job opportunities for graduating seniors interested in research-based careers​.
• NBER RA page. Aggregates RA searches by NBER fellows. 

Funding Opportunities

• URAF: The Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships (URAF) calendar includes information sessions and opportunities. Many URAF programs who have historically had applications through CARAT are now operating through the Harvard University Funding Portal (HUFP).
• Harvard Culture Lab Innovation Fund: Funding opportunities for advancing diversity, inclusion, and belonging through technology driven solutions. All Harvard students, staff, faculty, postdoctoral researchers, and academic personnel are eligible to apply.
• All Harvard Fellowships from the Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowship
• Harvard College Funding Sources Database
• Harvard University CARAT (Common Application for Funding and Travel)
• Harvard College: A Guide to Finding Funding
• Various links for funding opportunities in economics
• Echoing Green Fellowships for funding opportunities social entrepreneurship
• Frank N. Newman Undergraduate Research Fund in Economics, rolling acceptance
• The Davis Center for research related to Russia and Eurasia.
• Ec Dept Undergraduate Research and Travel Fund, rolling acceptance (thesis writers only)

Other Interesting Opportunities

• Seminars, Workshops, Conferences, etc:
  • Pre-Doctoral Research in Economics (PRE) Workshop: PREDOC.org will host their annual virtual pre-doctoral workshop on Wednesday, August 12 from 1:00-4:00 PM Central Daylight Time. Panelists will include current pre-doctoral fellows and prominent social scientists who will offer insights for students exploring and applying to pre-docs. Registration is required. 
  • CID Student Seminars: The Harvard Center for International Development (CID) offer non-credit CID Student Seminars which meet regularly during the semester to connect students with leading international development practitioners who navigate critical, cross-cutting topics within their fields.
  • Events with URAF Research Ambassadors: Have you ever wanted to talk to a classmate about their research journey? The Research Ambassadors are here for you. These four Harvard College juniors and seniors provide peer-to-peer mentoring, advising, and workshops to any undergraduate. They have all done research in different areas and bring a wide range of experience navigating Harvard’s research opportunities.
  • Zotero Workshops:  Attend a Zotero class to learn how to easily save references, organize PDFs, create in-text citations & footnotes, and create bibliographies automatically.
  • MATLAB Boot Camp: The primary objective is to familiarize students with the MATLAB computational environment.  This boot camp does not suppose any prior experience with MATLAB or computation.
  • Python Boot Camp: The Python Boot Camp is designed to provide an introduction to coding in Python. It assumes zero prior knowledge of Python or programming in general.
  • Qualitative Research Workshops: Harvard Library workshops for students interested in using qualitative data and doing interview-based research.
• Student Groups:
  • HUEA Mentorship Program: The Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association, in coordination with the Economics Department, is excited to launch a mentorship program matching small groups of undergraduates with graduate student mentors. Groups are encouraged to meet about once per month (in person or Zoom) to chat about courses, research, careers, grad school, and anything else economics-related. HUEA plans to provide some funding for in-person meetups (coffee/dessert/etc). All years and concentrations are welcome! Please submit this form by Monday, February 16, 11:59 PM for initial matching (rolling matching may continue afterward with enough space and interest). Contact thehuea@gmail.com with questions.
  • Join the HUEA Events Team: The Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association is seeking Events Associates to help plan and run events for the economics community at Harvard—guest speakers, debates, panels, and workshops, and more. Associates will gain hands-on experience with event planning and professional outreach while connecting with economic leaders across academia, industry, and public policy, and also support the aforementioned HUEA mentorship program (with priority access to participate). Please apply using this form with a soft deadline of Friday, February 20 (rolling applications thereafter). Email kenneth_chen@college.harvard.edu with questions.
  • The Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association: HUEA is a forum for all students concentrating or interested in economics providing academic, professional, and social support through student mixers and intercollegiate networking events, career and internship panels, and topical discussions with faculty and professional economists.
  • Harvard Undergrads for Inclusion in Economics  (HUIE) has in past semesters worked directly with the Harvard Economics Department to create a more diverse and inclusive community within the field. The club is currently inactive, but if you would like to revive it, you can reach out to alebrun@fas.harvard.edu
• Study Abroad:
  • Interested in Study Abroad? Meet with Office of International Education (OIE) staff and student advisers during drop-ins Monday-Thursdays, 2-4pm to chat about the vast range of academic opportunities.
  • Sophomores interested in spending junior spring at Oxford or Cambridge, applications are due in January and February.
  • Enjoy coffee on the OIE with one of your fellow Economics concentrators or any of the OIE Student Advisor team members! Reach out to schedule a time to connect.
  • It’s never too early to start planning. Summer and fall term applications are due in early spring and spring term applications are due in early fall.
  • Hear from fellow Economics Concentrators who are willing to share their study abroad experiences with you.
  • Follow the Instagram stories of students abroad this term at HarvardOIE!
  • Feel free to reach out to the OIE team (oie@fas.harvard.edu) and Nicole Garcia (ngarcia@fas.harvard.edu) with any questions or concerns.
• Other:
  • Mentor at Project Access: Project Access Program offers one-on-one mentoring between less privileged applicants and current top university students. Mentors give advice on choosing universities and courses, personal statements, references, interviews, and other aspects of the application process. Deadline: none given (posted 7/23/2024)
  • Interested in Development?  Kiran Gajwani, part of our Ec Advising Team, is starting a casual discussion group for undergrads interested in issues facing lower-income countries.  Kiran is a development economist and hopes to use this group to foster connections between development-interested students within the economics concentration and across the College more broadly.  If you're interested, please fill out this super quick form! https://forms.gle/E9UpuHniH4qcJmNL7
  • Big Brothers Big Sisters: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts seeks volunteers for their site based mentoring program. Volunteer a few hours a month on campus, at a local school, or out in the community. Deadline: none given (posted 9/20/2022)
• Journal Calls for Undergrad Papers:
  • The Harvard Undergraduate Research Journal: THURJ is Harvard's sole peer-reviewed undergraduate research journal publishing a broad spectrum of research across various disciplines, allowing students to share their work with their peers; this work can include their senior theses or other significant research manuscripts. Their manuscript submissions are rolling.
• Competitions and Prizes:
  • Private Equity/Search Fund Internship Competition: The Wall Street Guide 2026 Finance Internship Competition top three winners will receive a private equity firm or search fund internship with stipend. Winners will also receive a $10k merit scholarship to the WSG Career Accelerator program. Applications are open to all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors interested in a career in finance or consulting. Application closes on July 31st.
  • Harvard Prize Office Prize Descriptions, for student achievements (esp. great for thesis writers: if you need to send thesis comments, contact econundergrad@fas.harvard.edu)
• Career Panels and Advice:
  • Econ RA Guide: Offers a community resource based off of current and former RAs in Economics.
• Graduate School Advertisements
  • Dual Masters in Applied Economics (CUHK) and Social and Economic Policy (Northwestern)
  • Master of Finance at MIT Sloan
  • Master of Business Administration at MIT Sloan
  • CERGE-EI PhD in Economics and Master in Economic Research. CERGE-EI (Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education - Economics Institute) is a joint workplace of Charles University and the Economics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences
  • Master of Science in Project Management program at Columbia University
  • Decision, Risk, and Operations (DRO) PhD at Colombia Business School
  • Master’s programs in Economics, Finance, and Data Science at Barcelona School of Economics
  • Master’s Program of the Department of Economics at Washington University in St. Louis
  • PhD in Economics at Texas A&M University
  • Master of Actuarial and Quantitative Risk Management (MAQRM) at Ohio State University
  • Ph.D. in Population Studies and Ph.D. in Population Studies and Social Policy at Princeton University
  • Master of Health Science (MHS) in Global Health Economics
  • Ph.D. in Demography from the University of Pennsylvania
  • MSPH in Health Systems and MHS in Global Health Economics at Johns Hopkins
  • PhD in Insurance Economics and Actuarial Analytics at University of Wisconsin School of Business
  • PhD in Political Economy at the University of Chicago
  • Teaching and Teacher Leadership:  The Teaching and Teacher Leadership (TTL) master’s program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE)
  • MSc in Applied Economics, Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore)
  • Master of Research in Economics, European University Institute
  • MS program in Quantitative Economics at New York University
  • Kellogg Future Leaders. MBA deferred enrollment program. This program is for undergraduate seniors and master’s students with no work experience who can apply (and be accepted) before they finish their degree.
  • PhD in Operations Management, NYU Stern School of Business
  • MA programs at the George Washington University that focus on applied economics and international economic policy
  • The New School : MA/MS Degree Programs in International Affairs
  • Silver Scholars Program, Yale School of Management
  • PhD in Economics at the University of Florida
  • Master in Finance at Princeton University
  • McCourt School of Public Policy, Georgetown
  • School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan
  • Systems Engineering, Cornell 
     
• Blogs:
  • Top Econ Blogs
  • Greg Mankiw's Blog
  • The FRED Blog Visit the blog to learn more about FRED’s database, and get tips and lessons in data literacy.